Duchess Kate Nails Why People Don't Seek Mental Health Help

The duchess, along with Prince William and Prince Harry, spoke out about how stigma prevents people with mental illness from seeking support. The brief speech by the former Kate Middleton was part of an event in London on Tuesday for Heads Together, the royals’ mental health charity.

“The challenge that so many people have is not knowing how to take that first step of reaching out to another person for help. Admitting that they are not coping,” she said. “Fear, or reticence, or a sense of not wanting to burden another, means that people suffer in silence ― allowing the problem to grow larger and larger unchecked.”

Kate couldn’t have summed it up better. Too often shame silences those with a mental health condition. And what’s worse is that it could be damaging to that person’s health: Research shows that the misconceptions surrounding behavioral health conditions often stand in the way of people getting professional treatment.

This is another mental health issue the royals are hoping to tackle. Last year, Kate penned an essay for The Huffington Post U.K. where she addressed the consequences that come with ignoring a child’s psychological well-being.